Culver hints "big jobs announcement" for Iowa in early ’09

Governor Chet Culver hints there will be a big economic development announcement for Iowa in the new year. "We will get out of this economic recession and our state is moving forward. We’ve created 2300 new, green-collar jobs. We’re going to have a big jobs announcement early next year," Culver hints. "Companies are still expanding in Iowa, despite the economic challenges."

Culver made his comment on the program "Iowa Press," which aired Friday night on Iowa Public Television. After the show’s taping, reporters asked for details about that "big jobs announcement," but Culver was cagey. "We’ve got a lot of good news on the horizon related to job creation and that’s my point that despite the recession, there are a lot of businesses — big and small — that continue to show a lot of interest in Iowa and I’m encouraged by that," Culver said. "I’m not going to get into the particulars of any specific company that we’re talking to."

Culver added he is "very confident" there will be more than one "big" announcement. "It’s not limited to one deal," Culver told reporters. "We’ve got a lot of good things that are happening, a lot of interest in our state whether it’s with existing Iowa companies or ones that are looking about coming to our state for the first time."

The state’s unemployment rate remained fairly stable in November, with last month’s jobless figure a tenth-of-a-percent lower than it had been in October.